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Updated: oil falls 5% upon settlement, with geopolitical concerns calm


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Updated .. Oil losses exceed 1.5% at the settlement in a volatile session

Updated .. Oil losses exceed 1.5% at the settlement in a volatile session

24 July 2019 09:56 PM
Mubasher : Oil prices fell on Wednesday's trading session, in a volatile session despite a sharp decline in inventories and US production.

The US Energy Information Administration revealed that oil inventories in the United States fell by 10.8 million barrels more than expected last week.

US oil production fell by 700,000 barrels last week to 11.300 million barrels.

Investors are watching the resumption of trade talks next week in the hope of a deal between China and the United States that undermines fears of slowing demand.

However, fears of a slowdown in economic growth and then slowing demand for investors' trading were after negative data on industrial activity in the world.

Iranian President Hassan Rowhani also said that his country is ready for fair negotiations, if it does not mean surrender, according to Reuters, "in reference to the possibility of calm geopolitical fears.

On the settlement, US Nymex crude futures for September delivery fell 1.6 percent to $ 55.88 a barrel, after rising $ 57.64 a barrel.

By 6:50 pm GMT, the benchmark Brent crude for September delivery fell 0.8 percent to $ 63.24 a barrel from $ 64.66 a barrel earlier in the session.

 
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US oil production falls 700,000 barrels per week

US oil production falls 700,000 barrels per week

 24 July 2019 06:09 PM
Mubasher: Oil production in the United States fell by about 700 thousand barrels per day during the week, to be the second decline in a row.

US oil production fell to 11.300 million barrels per day (bpd) in the week ending July 19, compared to 12 million bpd in the previous week, the US Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

The sharp drop in US oil production is the second consecutive  decline , moving away from the record high at the weekly level of 12.400 million barrels per day by the end of May.

The increase in US exports of oil by a large margin of imports last week, the decline in net imports of crude in the United States by about 562 thousand barrels per day.

US net imports fell to 3.736 million bpd last week from 4.298 million bpd recorded in the previous week.

According to data, US imports of oil increased by 196 thousand barrels per day to 7.028 million barrels per day.

While US oil exports rose 758 thousand barrels per day to 3.292 million barrels per day.

Looking at US oil inventories , it fell 10.8 million barrels last week to 445 million barrels, lower than the 4.2 million barrel forecast.

US gasoline inventories fell 0.2 million barrels last week.

By 2:35 pm GMT, the price of Brent crude for September delivery rose 1.1 percent to $ 64.53 a barrel.

During the same period, US Nymex crude futures for September delivery rose 1.3 percent to $ 57.52 a barrel.

 
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  • yota691 changed the title to Oil prices rise due to Middle East tensions
 
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 Arab and international


Economy News _ Baghdad

Oil prices rose on Friday amid concerns about tensions in the Middle East, despite weak prospects for global economic growth amid the US-China trade war. 
By 4:57 GMT, London Brent crude futures were up 7 cents or 0.1 percent at $ 63.46 a barrel. While crude oil futures rose 0.3 percent in the previous session. 
US WTI crude rose 18 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $ 56.20 a barrel after rising 0.25 percent last night. 
While fears of supply disruptions in the Middle East, prices have soared recently, they are generally under pressure over concerns about global economic growth amid growing signs of damage to the aftermath of the Sino-US trade war over the past year.
A week after Iran seized a British flag carrier in the Gulf, Britain sent a warship to escort all its flagged vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, a policy change announced on Thursday after the former government said it did not have enough military resources.


Views 41   Date Added 26/07/2019

 
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Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak. "Internet"
  

 Arab and international


Economy News Baghdad

Russian oil production is expected to be between 556 and 557 million tons this year, between 11.17 and 11.19 million bpd, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said in preliminary estimates. 

This will be in line with Moscow's commitments to the Global Compact to Cut Oil Production. 

"We have another half-year ahead, so it's hard to predict the exact figure," Novak told reporters during a visit to Turkey on Friday. "We'll see how things develop." 

Under the global deal, Russia has committed to cut its oil production by 228,000 bpd from 11.41 million bpd pumped in October. 

Novak said Moscow was committed to maintaining the average monthly production of oil in line with the global agreement, but the level may fluctuate during the month due to various factors.

Earlier this month, OPEC and independent producers, led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, agreed to extend the current cut production agreement until the end of March 2020 to support crude prices as global economies weaken and US oil production rises. 

This week, Novak said the global oil market is balanced and volatility is not high. 

Preliminary data

Russian oil production fell to nearly its lowest level in three years in early July due to a dispute between Transnavt monopoly of Russian oil pipelines and Rosneft, the largest producer of crude in the country. 

Russian crude production rose to an average of 11.099 million barrels per day (bpd) from July 1 to 25, up from 11.05 million bpd between July 1 and 21, two sources familiar with the oil sector told Reuters.

The figure is lower than the June average of 11.15 million barrels per day, down from the level agreed by Russia in the cut production agreement, under which Russia commits to cut output by 228,000 barrels per day from 11.41 million bpd pumped in October 2018.

The Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak in preliminary estimates that the production of Russian oil is expected to be between 556 and 557 million tons this year, or between 11.17 and 11.19 million barrels per day. 

This will be in line with Moscow's commitments to the Global Compact to Cut Oil Production. 

"We have another half-year ahead, so it's hard to predict the exact figure," Novak told reporters during a visit to Turkey on Friday. "We'll see how things develop." 

Under the global deal, Russia has committed to cut its oil production by 228,000 bpd from 11.41 million bpd pumped in October.

Novak said Moscow was committed to maintaining the average monthly production of oil in line with the global agreement, but the level may fluctuate during the month due to various factors. 

Earlier this month, OPEC and independent producers, led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, agreed to extend the current production cuts by the end of March 2020 to support crude prices as global economies weaken and US oil production rises. 

This week, Novak said the global oil market is balanced and volatility is not high. 

Preliminary data

Russian oil production fell to nearly its lowest level in three years in early July because of a dispute between Transnavt monopoly of Russian oil pipelines and Rosneft, the largest crude producer in the country.

Russian crude production rose to an average of 11.099 million barrels per day (bpd) from July 1 to 25, up from 11.05 million bpd between July 1 and 21, two sources familiar with the oil sector told Reuters. 

The figure is lower than the June average of 11.15 million barrels per day, down from the level agreed by Russia in the cut production agreement, under which Russia commits to cut production by 228,000 bpd from 11.41 million bpd pumped in October 2018.


Views 23   Date Added 27/07/2019

 
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  • yota691 changed the title to Oil falls on concerns about economic growth

Oil falls on concerns about economic growth

Oil falls on concerns about economic growth

 29 July 2019 11:15 p
Mubasher: Oil prices fell on Monday, with concerns about the outlook for economic growth as well as positive developments on tensions in the Middle East.

The price of black gold is negatively affected by the weakness of future economic outlook as it reduces oil consumption.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut its estimates for global economic growth this year and 2020 last week, making it the fourth such resolution in nine months.

Official data released last week showed slower US economic growth in the second quarter, though better than expected.

On the other hand, negotiators from the US and Chinese sides are meeting this week to resume trade talks, which stalled in May.

In a separate context, the meeting of the parties to the Iran nuclear agreement for 2015 last weekend was constructive but there are unresolved issues, according to Iranian official Abbas Arachi.

Tehran is set to continue cutting its nuclear commitments if the Europeans fail to salvage the pact, which the United States pulled out last year.

By 7:37 am GMT, the benchmark Brent crude for September delivery fell 0.6 percent to $ 63.07 a barrel.

US Nymex crude futures fell 0.3 percent to $ 56.02 a barrel.

 
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  • yota691 changed the title to Oil climbs for a fifth day as inventory falls and awaits US Central Bank decision

Oil climbs for a fifth day as inventory falls and awaits US Central Bank decision

Economy | 01:23 - 31/07/2019

 
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Follow up - Mawazine News

Oil prices rose for a fifth session on Wednesday, supported by lower US stocks and investors' expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut borrowing costs for the first time since the financial crisis more than a decade ago. 
By 0842 GMT, London Brent crude was up 40 cents, or 0.6 percent, at $ 65.12 a barrel. 
The WTI rose 20 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $ 58.25 a barrel. 
US Central Bank officials began a two-day meeting on Tuesday and are expected to cut interest rates as President Donald Trump renews his call to the Fed to cut interest rates sharply. 
US Petroleum Institute data showed on Tuesday that oil inventories in the United States fell again last week as well as gasoline stocks and distillates.
Crude stocks fell 6 million barrels to 443 million barrels in the week ending July 26, compared with a forecast of 2.6 million barrels in a Reuters poll of analysts.

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Oil Crashes As Trade War Escalates

By Nick Cunningham - Aug 01, 2019, 2:00 PM CDT

Oil prices crashed on Thursday immediately after President Trump announced another round of tariffs on China.

Trump said he would put a 10 percent tariff on the remaining $300 billion worth of Chinese imports that, to date, have not been covered by the levies. And the new tariffs, which Trump says will take effect on September 1, come in addition to the existing 25 percent tariffs on $250 billion of imports. In other words, at the start of next month, just about everything the U.S. imports from China will be subjected to tariffs.

Oil prices plunged by more than 8 percent immediately after the news, pushing WTI below $55 per barrel and Brent down to $61. The tariff announcement was ill-timed for the oil market, which was already heading south due to the disappointing result from the U.S. Federal Reserve. The central bank cut interest rates but warned that it wouldn’t mark the beginning of an extended period of enhanced monetary easing.

Also, while the oil market is tightening up just a bit, a recent wave of oil reports all forecasted an expected big supply surplus in 2020, which is the result of tepid demand growth at a time of surging supply. Related: The First Country To Abandon IMO 2020

The fragile economy and looming oil supply surplus will almost certainly be exacerbated by the escalation of the trade war. The breakdown in negotiations in May, which resulted in the hike of tariffs on the $250 billion tranche of goods from 10 to 25 percent did not go down wellwith financial markets. But traders took comfort in the fact that the U.S. and China appeared to agree not to escalate things further after Trump and Xi Jingping met in Japan in late June.

Which is exactly why Trump’s announcement on Thursday caught everyone by surprise. It may be a high-risk strategy by American negotiators to ratchet up the pressure in hopes of forcing China to make major concessions. By announcing a September 1implementation date, Trump has given Beijing a month to stew on the matter.

But there is little evidence to suggest that China would buckle under the pressure. If anything, the Chinese government has dug in its heels, taking a firmer line the harder the U.S. pushes. With China’s economy slowing, Xi is certainly under pressure, but appearing weak by giving in to Trump’s demands is arguably a greater political risk than standing firm in letting tariffs go up.

As a result, the pitfalls for oil are growing.

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OPEC Oil Production Drops To Eight-Year Low

By Tsvetana Paraskova - Aug 01, 2019, 9:30 AM CDT

Deeper production cuts at leading producer Saudi Arabia, lower output at sanctions-hit Iran, and outages in Libya and Venezuela sent OPEC’s crude oil production in July falling to its lowest level since 2011, the monthly Reuters survey found.   

In July, OPEC’s fourteen members pumped a combined 29.42 million bpd, a decline of 280,000 bpd compared to June, according to the Reuters survey that tracks supply to the market from shipping data and sources at OPEC, oil companies, and consulting firms.

While Saudi Arabia continued to cut even deeper than it had done earlier this year in its efforts to ‘do whatever it takes’ to reduce oversupply and bolster oil prices, the three OPEC members exempt from the OPEC+ pact—Iran, Venezuela, and Libya—all saw lower production in July compared to June, the Reuters survey found.

The Saudis pumped 9.65 million bpd in July, after OPEC and its allies extended the production cuts into 2020 at the beginning of the month.

That’s a deeper cut compared to the 9.813 million bpdSaudi production in June that OPEC reported in its official figures. In June, the Saudis had lifted production from May by 126,000 bpd, but they were still producing less than their 10.311-million-bpd quota under the pact.

The Reuters survey for July suggests that the Saudis are trying hard to tighten the market by deepening the cuts.

Elsewhere in the group, the three members exempted from the pact—Iran, Venezuela, and Libya—involuntarily reduced their respective production in July. Iran’s output further dropped due to the U.S. sanctions, Libya briefly shut down its largest oil field Sharara, while another blackout in Venezuela impacted oil production which has been steadily declining amid the economic and political crisis.

OPEC will release its official crude oil production data for July in the Monthly Oil Market Report (MOMR) on

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Oil Trapped In Narrow Price Band

By Nick Cunningham - Jul 31, 2019, 6:00 PM CDT

Oil prices appear to be trapped within a relatively narrow range, squeezed between competing forces on both the upside and downside.

There is no shortage of news, but WTI is stuck between $50 and $60, and Brent is stuck between $60 and $70. Obviously, nothing is ever static in the oil market, and the one truism about oil is that volatility can and will return. But for now, oil is range-bound, supported by supply outages, OPEC+ cuts and geopolitical unrest on the one hand, but capped by weak demand and a looming return of surplus on the other.

“Oil markets have been becalmed within tight ranges amid falling volatility,” Standard Chartered wrote in a note. “While front-month Brent has settled higher on seven of the past eight trading days, the pace of the ascent has been glacial.”

Opposing forces are keeping crude prices in place. The threat to the Strait of Hormuz is old news by now, and the markets are not overly concerned about a possible outage. Iran and the UK, each with their own tanker, are working to de-escalate tensions. But they are at an impasse, and the parallel U.S. and European initiatives to patrol the Persian Gulf could yet reignite tensions, and that threat has helped to keep prices higher than they otherwise might be.

At the same time, Iran’s oil exports continue to fall. According to Reuters, Iranian shipments may have plunged as low as 100,000 bpd in July – another massive decline – down from 400,000 bpd in June. The precise figure is up for debate, especially since some tankers can turn off their transponders to avoid detection. But it’s safe to say that exports are in decline. “We can’t be sure that all of this capacity has been sold in July,” Sara Vakhshouri, an analyst at SVB Energy International, told Reuters. “Also, it’s important to note that some of the deliveries mostly to China are based on IOU contracts and are not new sales.” Iran shipped as much as 2.5 mb/d prior to the return of sanctions in early 2018.

Meanwhile, some recent data points from the U.S. could also put some upward pressure on crude. The EIA reported a slight decrease in U.S. oil production in May, the latest month for which data is available. Production declined by 26,000 bpd month-on-month, dragged down by a 78,000-bpd dip in offshore output. The return of idled production the Gulf of Mexico will bring that number back up in ensuing data releases, but nevertheless, the production gain of just 16,000 bpd in Texas is notably smaller than the monthly increases in the past two years. Related: What’s Stopping Oil From Breaking Out?

The rig count continues to fall, which points to deceleration, even if rigs are an imperfect metric for tracking production. Still, output gains are slowing in tandem with the dip. Oklahoma also lost 12,000 bpd for the month and the rig count continues to fall there. The “steady flow of capital out of Oklahoma has continued,” Standard Chartered wrote in its report.

The lower-than-expected figures from U.S. shale call into question the heady growth forecasts. While the U.S. shale sector is suffering from financial stress, the unfolding slowdown could result in some bullish pressure on crude oil.

“Supply fundamentals still remain supportive of oil prices, and are tightening given the effectiveness of U.S. sanctions that have reduced Iran’s crude oil exports to a trickle,” Harry Tchilinguirian, head of commodity markets strategy at BNP Paribas SA, told Bloomberg. But for “oil to move higher, the market is going to need a positive economic catalyst.” Related: Will We Really See An Oil Glut In 2020?

The flip side of this story is weak demand, economic uncertainty and the expected supply surplus in 2020. Some analysts, including the IEA, have predicted a supply wave in 2020 that will force OPEC+ to back out even more production or else face a price crash. An economic recession, should it occur, would likely result in a total bust.

In short, there are multiple forces on both the upside and downside, keeping oil range-bound. “[W]hile headline risks have been plentiful, they’re price impacts are mixed and support both bullish and bearish theses, leaving plenty of buyers and sellers on either side of $55/bbl,” Rory Johnston, commodity economist at Scotiabank, wrote in a note.

But some of the worst economic fears have receded in the past few weeks, especially given the change of direction from several top central banks around the world, including the U.S. Federal Reserve. That has given a slight edge to the bulls. “Concerns about demand have moved into the background, at least temporarily, thanks to better than expected economic data in the US and the Fed’s imminent rate cut,” Commerzbank said in a note on Wednesday.

WTI is edging up to the high-$50s and Brent to $65. But something would need to dramatically change to force prices out of their current range.

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  • yota691 changed the title to Oil is recovering after the previous session's decline due to US fees
 
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 Arab and international


Economy News _ Baghdad

Oil prices rose about 2 percent on Friday, recovering after the biggest losses in years as US President Donald Trump imposed more tariffs on Chinese imports, triggering a trade war between the world's two biggest economies and consumers.

Brent crude futures fell more than 7 percent on Thursday, their biggest drop in more than three years. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell nearly 8 percent to its worst daily performance in more than four years.

The plunge put an end to a fragile rally driven by a steady decline in US stocks, although global demand seems to be shaken by the trade dispute.

Brent crude rose $ 1.21 or 2 percent to $ 61.71 a barrel by 0657 GMT, while US crude futures rose 87 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $ 54.82 a barrel.

Trump said on Thursday he would impose a 10 percent charge on Chinese imports worth $ 300 billion from Sept. 1, and fees could increase more if Chinese President Xi Jinping did not move more quickly to reach a trade deal.


Views 27   Date Added 02/08/2019

 
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Oil Bounces Back On Rig Count Decline

By Julianne Geiger - Aug 02, 2019, 12:26 PM CDT

The US oil and gas rig count fell by 8 again this week, according to Baker Hughes, adding to months of losses and bringing the overall rig count to the lowest in a year and a half.

The total number of active oil rigs in the United States fell by 6 according to the report, reaching 770. The number of active gas rigs increased by 2 to reach 171.

The combined oil and gas rig count is now 942 for the week, with oil rigs seeing a loss of 89 rigs year on year, with gas rigs down 12 since this time last year. The combined oil and gas rig count is down triple digits, at 102 year on year.

Year-to-date, the oil rig count has fallen from 858 active rigs since the beginning of the year to 770, while gas rigs have fallen from 187 to 171 during that same time.

Oil prices were trading up on Friday morning, but the 2+% gains was not enough to offset the massive loss seen the day before after President Donald Trump announced a further tariff would be levied on the remaining $300 billion worth of goods coming in from China, to go into effect next month.

The price recovery seen early on Friday suggest that the recent crude inventory draws in the US, along with the conflict in the Persian Gulf, are superseding the fears of slower economic growth sparked by the additional tariffs on China.

At 9:08am EST today WTI was up $1.23 (+2.28%) at $55.18—down just $0.70 from this time last week. The Brent benchmark was also up on the day, by $1.58 (+2.61%) at $62.08—a $1 decrease from this time last week.

US production recovered this week after slipping in the week prior, to 12.2 million bpd for week ending July 26, adding 900,000 bpd in the week.

Canada’s overall rig count saw an increase this week of 10, adding to last week’s 9-rig increase. Canada’s oil rigs are down 61 year on year, with gas rigs down 25 year on year.

WTI was trading up 3.37%, recovering from yesterday’s huge loss.

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Russia confirms its commitment to the OPEC agreement on oil production

Political | 05:56 - 03/08/2019

 
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Follow - up - the balance of News 
said the Russian Ministry of Energy on Saturday, said that Russian oil production in July , in line with the OPEC agreement, pointing out that Moscow intends to abide arrangements in August. 
Russia's output in July fell 290,000 bpd compared with October 2018, the reference date in the OPEC-Opec supply reduction agreement, the ministry said. 
Oil prices rose nearly 3 percent on Friday, a day after it posted its biggest one-day drop in a few years as US President Donald Trump threatened that the United States would impose more tariffs on Chinese goods. 
Brent crude for October delivery ended $ 1.89, or 2.3 percent, at $ 61.89 per barrel.
Global gauge ore fell more than 7 percent in Thursday's session, its biggest one-day drop in more than three years.

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Oil must stay below $50 per barrel

14 hours ago

 

Low oil prices key to economic reforms

 
Al-Harami.jpg Kamel Al-Harami Independent Oil Analyst

Keeping the oil prices below $50 per barrel is the only hope for ensuring any serious economic reforms in Kuwait, especially with the ongoing budget deficits.

This should force us to take serious actions in stopping the wastage of money on salaries without any production or productivity. A low oil price is the only remedy for oil producing countries to take harsh economic reforms.

This should be coupled with continuous reminders that oil is not the solution, and finding new alternatives is the only weapon. This should be driven by a serious and strong government that can carry out economic reforms all the way with tangible work, without any favors, and ensuring equal opportunity to all.

We in Kuwait are the last to take any measured economic reforms yet in order to correct and upgrade ourselves within a short time, even though many opportunities exist, and despite all the financial economic studies undertaken by various international organizations, governments and private bodies.

The improvement in oil prices to the level of $60 per barrel does not seem to affect the government despite the shortage, as it can always use its financial deposits to balance its books for some time.

However, it will hurt us more if the oil prices remain weak and within the $50 level. Another factor that our Kuwait government can’t do with its economic program is that it has to compromise and get the Parliament approval, under the usual political compromises, which at the end results in nothing.

This is why weak oil prices can work for us in taking active serious actions, especially with the lack of full parliamentary support and new job opportunities for the coming 20,000 new job seekers. Almost 50 percent of our government employees or 193,000 out of a total of 390,000 employees are nonproductive with no active work or production. Some of them do not even have any office space.

This kind of practice should stop, but again interferences of the members of our Parliament just make the government’s task near impossible. Economic reforms are needed now more than ever. We need help that should come from outside, as oil prices are bound to be low for years to come. We in Kuwait have greater chances and opportunities without the need to depend on oil and with our low population and standard education. Such a day will hopefully come soon.

By Kamel Al-Harami Independent Oil Analyst

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Brent Drops Below $60 Amid Global Stock Market Slide

By Julianne Geiger - Aug 05, 2019, 3:00 PM CDT

Oil prices were trading down again Monday despite tensions in the Middle East. The latest market mover is not the tensions surrounding Iran, and it’s not outages in Libya and Venezuela. It’s not even oil production or inventory moves in the United States—it’s China.

Specifically, it’s the most recent move by China to allow its currency to devalue that has the markets in an uproar.  The move follows a last-week announcement by President Donald Trump that the US plans to slap tariffs on the remaining $300 billion of goods that come in from China.

At 1:54pm EST, WTI was trading down $0.64 (-1.15%) at $55.04 per barrel. Brent was trading down $1.77 (-2.86%) at $60.12.

And it’s not just oil prices that are feeling skittish. Stock markets around the world are in full-blown panic mode, with gold and government bonds taking full advantage. Gold prices jumped more than 1%.

Global stocks fell as China retaliated on Monday by letting its currency devalue below its typical 7-to-1 ratio with the US dollar for the first in a decade. China’s move shook the global markets as fear set in that it might be only the beginning of a currency war with the United States.

The devaluation caught the attention President Donald Trump.

“China dropped the price of their currency to an almost a historic low. It’s called ‘currency manipulation.’ Are you listening Federal Reserve? This is a major violation which will greatly weaken China over time!” President Donald Trump tweeted on Monday in response.

The Dow was trading down almost 3% on Monday afternoon. The FTSE 100 was down 2.47%, while Asian markets were down 1.6%.

While oil prices took a beating Monday, it is largely expected that China will not target US oil even if it retaliates with additional tariffs. China has scaled back its purchases of US crude, and is therefore unlikely to be directly affected by further tariff actions.

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Oil Could Plunge By $30 If China Restores Iranian Oil Imports

By Tsvetana Paraskova - Aug 05, 2019, 12:00 PM CDT

Should China decide to defy the latest U.S. tariff threat by ramping up imports of Iranian crude oil in open defiance to the U.S. sanctions on Iran, oil prices could take a significant hit and plunge by as much as $20-$30 a barrel, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch cited by CNBC.  

Early on Monday, WTI Crude was down 1.28 percent at $54.95 at 08:10 a.m. EDT, and Brent Crude was down 1.24 percent at $61.12, as the renewed trade war rekindled fears of slowing global oil demand growth.

On Thursday last week, oil prices took a heavy hit after U.S. President Donald Trump said that the U.S.-China trade talks would continue in September, while the “U.S. will start, on September 1st, putting a small additional Tariff of 10% on the remaining 300 Billion Dollars of goods and products coming from China into our Country.”

China pledged to impose new “necessary countermeasures” to protect its interests after the latest tariff threat, saying that President Trump’s tariff announcement was “an irrational, irresponsible act,” according to Zhang Jun, the new Chinese ambassador to the United Nations, as carried by Reuters.  Related: Consumers Aren’t Crazy About Electric Cars

China’s reaction to the additional U.S. tariffs could include China resuming oil purchases from Iran to undermine the U.S. sanctions policy and cushion some effects on the Chinese economy from the new tariffs, BofA Merrill Lynch says.

“While we retain our $60 a barrel Brent forecast for next year, we admit that a Chinese decision to reinitiate Iran crude purchases could send oil prices into a tailspin,” CNBC quoted BofA Merrill Lynch as saying in a note.

Beijing has never actually stopped buying Iranian oil after the U.S. removed all sanction waivers for Iran’s customers in early May. China, the single largest buyer of Iranian crude oil before the U.S. sanctions hit the Islamic Republic’s oil exports, continues to import oil from Iran, despite the ‘zero exports’ maximum pressure campaign of the United States. China has said that it wouldn’t comply with the U.S. sanctions on Iranian exports. Yet, Chinese oil imports from Iran are much lower than they were just a few months ago.

Last week, Iran called on China and other ‘friendly countries’, as it put it, to buy more crude oil from the Islamic Republic.

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Australia Seeks To Stock Up On U.S. Oil Amid Gulf Spat

By Irina Slav - Aug 05, 2019, 12:00 PM CDT

Australia is in talks with the United States for buying crude oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserves in order to boost its own strategic reserves, the Sydney Morning Herald reports, quoting Energy Minister Angus Taylor.

According to the SMH, the country only has enough crude oil and gasoline to last it 28 days, which is substantially below the 90-day standard. The United States, in comparison, has enough oil to last 700 days.

"The government has undertaken this new initiative since the election to ensure that we continue to deliver increased security for Australians," the Australian official said.

The strategic reserve problem is not new. Media reported last year stockpiles of liquid fuels were much below the international standard. This should hardly be acceptable for a country overwhelmingly dependent on imports of liquid fuels, at up to 90 percent of the fuels it consumes.

Interestingly enough, the negotiations with the U.S. would not involve any actual transfer of crude into Australia. Rather, Canberra is seeking to secure access to the U.S. SPR, distributed across four locations along the Gulf Coast.

"The whole point of this is to minimise costs," Taylor toldABC. "What we don't want to do is establish a physical reserve at very high cost in Australia and pass on that cost to Australians at the bowser."
 

The issue is potentially urgent: Australia relies on Asia for most of its fuel imports and Asia in turn relies on Middle Eastern oil to produce the fuels. With the growing tensions in the Middle East, the Australian government is getting increasingly worried about the security of fuel supplies.

"Australia's reliant on traffic through the Strait of Hormuz for a percentage of our oil supply, so we're doing everything that we can do be a good government and be prudent to ensure a continuity of supply," Australia Defence Minister, Linda Reynolds said.

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Thank you Pitcher for posting .. We are certainly living in the most unpredictable of times and that crash that is coming is going to be far worse than 2008 .. The US -China trade stalemate is virtually holding the whole world to ransom both materially and financially in my opinion  Just here at home the AUD has dropped to its lowest against the USD in 10 years  and is under 68cents. There is a generation just picking up from the last one and but far worse than that we have a new generation that sadly cannot even comprehend the consequences of what is impending. I Have an elderly friend who says to me often “that we grew up and lived in the best of times” .. That is so true when we look at the chaos of today’s world.

 

Edited by NoviceInvestor
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Interesting times for sure Novice.  I have no idea what may happen in the future but I have tried to prepare the best way I can for any financial down turn.  I have zero debt and have stash of gold, silver, other countries currency, bunllets and booze for bartering.  It sure seems to be a mighty clash a coming. 

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My apologies to anyone who was offended by my post, especially you Rafiki1.

It was not my intention to upset you or anyone else.  If you would like to hear the story of how I almost died 3 years ago and how I’m not in the best of shape, call me. My phone number is available on my profile. If I don’t answer leave me a message because I screen my calls and don’t return calls I don’t recognize.  I’m serious call me and maybe I can set your mind at peace. You are obviously having a hard time.  

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Thank you, my health issues were a complete nightmare and I may never completely get over the hump and back to normal.  I try to live every day like it’s my last and I try to see the positive in everything.  After rereading my post I can see how that might not sit to well with those that are suffering, I will try to be more sensitive.  

 

 

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8 minutes ago, Pitcher said:

Thank you, my health issues were a complete nightmare and I may never completely get over the hump and back to normal.  I try to live every day like it’s my last and I try to see the positive in everything.  After rereading my post I can see how that might not sit to well with those that are suffering, I will try to be more sensitive.  

 

 

 

Never apologize for your planning and successes. People rise and fall everyday. It’s those that do nothing who should want for more and need to their ass up and get off the canvas. I’m from a hood of suffering so I realize what being part of it takes. And that’s a lot of excuses and bad choices. It Takes a plan and action to try to get out. Great job setting yourself up Pitch. 

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  • yota691 changed the title to Updated: oil falls 5% upon settlement, with geopolitical concerns calm

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